Review: Fast into the Night

Fast into the Night:A Woman, Her Dogs, and Their Journey North on the Iditarod Trail
By Debbie Clarke Moderow
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
February 2016
272 pages

Fast into the Night” is the true story of Debbie Moderow’s two runs in the infamous Iditarod sled dog race in 2003 and 2005. The role of rookie musher in the world’s most grueling sled dog race might seem like an impossible feat for a 47-year old woman. But Debbie was no rookie. She and husband Mark and their children Andy and Hannah, were a seasoned team of mushers with plenty of race starts under their belts, and a hand-picked team of 16 bred-for-racing sled dogs. For the Moderows, sled dog racing is a family sport packed with adrenalin-pumping challenges which are revealed warts and all. Even though Debbie and her dog team were alone out on the trail, they most definitely traveled with the spirits of their talented and loving support crew. And when Moderow describes those wild rides running trails behind her dog team, she mixes gut-wrenching emotion with lofty elation and vivid details all splashed across a canvas of the ever-changing and unrelenting Alaskan wilderness. Moderow does a masterful job of drawing readers into her plight.

If there was ever any doubt about the true athletes in sled dog racing it’s the dogs – always the dogs. And Moderow’s respect and admiration for her team shines throughout, yet sadly for me there wasn’t enough about the dogs. I wanted to know more about Kanga, Juliet, Zeppy, Sydney, Reno, Spur, Taiga, Lil Su, etc., besides what position they held in harness, what races they’d run, and how they behaved on the trail. Above all, Fast into the Night is an engrossing memoir of one woman’s exhilarating and terrifying journey into the great unknown relying on a team of dogs to guide her. ~ Copyright (c) 2016 by Peggy Tibbetts

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If you love dog stories …

“Crazy Bitch is a great read. Not only is it an excellent look into the world of canine mental illness, but also in coping with bully behavior. Tibbetts writes in a style that draws you in, as if you’re a friend. Within a few pages, you’ll find yourself caring more than perhaps you’d like to about Venus and cheering on the author in her quest to provide her dog with the best life possible.” ~ Sue Kottwitz, Talking Dogs Blog